Inside One of CENTURY 21’s Top Firms in the World with Todd Hetherington & Jason Carrier

In this episode of Real Estate Unscripted, Darryl Davis sits down with Todd Hetherington and Jason Carrier of CENTURY 21 New Millennium to unpack what it truly takes to build a profitable, resilient real estate brokerage in today’s rapidly changing market.

Todd, founder and CEO, and Jason, president, share nearly four decades of leadership lessons - from navigating shrinking margins and industry lawsuits to building multiple revenue streams, embracing AI, and creating a culture where agents and leaders thrive.

This is a candid, no-fluff conversation about:

•  Why brokerages can’t survive on commission splits alone
•  How to decide which ancillary services to bring in-house
•  The real role of AI in compliance, contracts, and lead generation
•  Why training must continue well beyond an agent’s first year
•  The leadership mistakes that quietly kill organizations
•  How agents can protect their value in a post-settlement market

Whether you’re a broker-owner, team leader, or agent who wants to think like a CEO, this episode delivers real-world strategy, hard-earned wisdom, and practical insights you can apply immediately.

Subscribe for more Real Estate Unscripted conversations

⏱️ Timestamps / Chapters

00:00 – Welcome to Real Estate Unscripted
02:30 – Introducing Todd Hetherington & Jason Carrier
04:30 – CENTURY 21 New Millennium’s growth across multiple states
06:00 – Todd’s founding principles: fun, fairness, and the “harder right”
09:00 – Why every agent should think like a business owner
11:00 – Jason’s leadership transition & getting out of the “ivory tower”
14:00 – Listening vs. leading: why visibility matters
16:00 – Building a full-service brokerage: mortgage, title & relocation
19:00 – Which ancillary services brokerages should add first
22:00 – Why profitability matters more than volume or bragging rights
25:00 – The danger of relying only on commission splits
28:00 – AI in real estate: compliance, contracts, and efficiency
32:00 – How AI is outperforming traditional transaction coordination
35:00 – Using AI without losing authenticity or relationships
38:00 – Training agents at every stage of their career
41:00 – FIRE & Inferno: building agents from 6 to 21+ transactions
44:00 – Why accountability drives real growth
47:00 – Lawsuits, compliance risks, and protecting the brokerage
51:00 – Zillow, data ownership, and the future of lead capture
55:00 – Buyer representation, value, and commission clarity
58:00 – The #1 metric leadership watches: average commission per side
01:01:00 – Leadership mistakes to stop making immediately
01:03:00 – Culture, language, and why naming things matters
01:05:00 – Book recommendation: Leaders Eat Last by Simon Sinek
01:07:00 – Final thoughts on the future of real estate leadership